Administrations
have discretionary powers to grant exemptions or equivalents
to the Regulations within strict safety parameters.

Exemptions
from specified regulations may be granted to vessels without
mechanical propulsion.

Exemptions
may also be granted to individual ships under strict safety
parameters.

Regulation
3

1.

The
Administration may grant general exemptions from the requirements
of regulations 15, 17,
18, 19(except 19.2.1.7), 20,
22, 24,
25, 26,
27 and 28
to ships without mechanical means of propulsion.

2.

The Administration may grant to individual ships exemptions
or equivalents of a partial or conditional nature, when any
such ship is engaged on a voyage where the maximum distance
of the ship from the shore, the length and nature of the voyage,
the absence of general navigational hazards, and other conditions
affecting safety are such as to render the full application
of this chapter unreasonable or unnecessary, provided that
the Administration has taken into account the effect such
exemptions and equivalents may have upon the safety of all
other ships.

3.

Each Administration shall submit to the Organization, as
soon as possible after 1 January in each year, a report
summarising all new exemptions and equivalents granted under
paragraph 2 of this regulation during the previous calendar
year and giving the reasons for granting such exemptions
and equivalents. The Organization shall circulate such particulars
to other Contracting Governments for information.

MCA
Guidance

1.

Paragraph
1 allows Administrations to grant general exemptions to vessels
with no means of propulsion (e.g. certain types of vessel
used in the offshore industry such as jack-up rigs, storage
or offloading units etc.) from the specified Regulations.
The MCA will grant exemptions to such UK-flagged ships.

2.

Paragraph
2 allows Administrations to grant exemptions or equivalences
of a partial or conditional nature to other vessels where
it can be shown that full application
of the Regulations is unnecessary or unreasonable. In such
cases, safety must not be compromised.

3.

Paragraph
3 requires Administrations to provide IMO with annual summaries
of all exemptions or equivalences so granted.

4.

Owners
of UK-registered vessels wishing to apply for an exemption
or an equivalence should apply to the MCA. They will only
be granted where compliance with the regulations is shown
to be unreasonable and the MCA is satisfied that alternative
steps are taken to achieve an equivalent level of safety.

5.

Equivalences
may be granted where the MCA deems that the substitution of
a particular fitting, material, appliance, apparatus or operational
procedure is at least as effective as that required by the
regulation.

6.

Exemptions
and equivalences are granted for a specified period. They
will not be granted indefinitely.